Rescue teams from several countries were battling against time on Friday to find a missing Indonesian Navy submarine lost in the Bali Sea with 53 crew, which would be rapidly running out of oxygen if not already crushed by water pressure.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Search helicopters and more navy ships left Bali and a naval base in Java at first light heading to the area where contact was lost with the 44-year-old KRI Nanggala-402 on Wednesday as it prepared to conduct a torpedo drill.
"The main priority is the safety of the 53 crew members," Indonesian President Joko Widodo said late on Thursday.
Indonesia's navy said it was investigating whether the submarine lost power during a dive and could not carry out emergency procedures as it descended to a depth of 600-700 meters, well beyond its survivable limits.
If the submarine was still intact, officials said it would only have enough air to last about another 15 hours until early Saturday morning.
